Petty Crime and the Justice System: A True Account From a Victim

Not all criminals are dumb, in fact, some of them are actually smart! The criminal element is ready to steal your hard-earned things at every waking minute. Criminals are not your friend! That unfamiliar guy in your neighborhood, walking by at 11 o'clock P.M. looking around, smoking a cigarette butt that he found on the ground moments earlier, he is not your buddy! He is looking for an opportunity. Not a job opportunity, not a business opportunity but the opportunity to rob your home or vehicle as soon as he can! Next, I will describe the event that happened to me and show you how smart these guys really are...

Let me begin by saying....these criminals are smart! This encounter happened on a dreary Sunday night...It was raining and just plain miserable outside. This my friends... is burglary weather, the criminals use the cover of darkness and the presence of rain to cover their tracks when committing these crimes. The darkness conceals their illegal actions and the rain plays two parts. Number one, the rain will wash away any evidence of fingerprints and also make it impossible for officers to dust for prints. Number two, A dreary, rainy night helps to keep the owners, "US" tucked peacefully away in our comfy warm homes, we tend to relax a little more and sleep more soundly on those rainy evenings. Exactly what "THEY" want. On this particular evening, at around 10:30 P.M., while watching TV, I heard the sound of a loud truck or tractor-trailer passing by, followed by a loud bang! I immediately went to the door and looked around...nothing. I went back to watching TV. 15 minutes later...the same thing... a loud truck goes by and then BANG!... I run to the door and look outside...what do I see???? An unfamiliar African American man sitting on the curb in front of my house next to my car. I observe him for a moment to get a description of him locked into my brain then I put my shoes on and turned on the front porch light. The suspect then flees the area and I notice gouges and a white powdery substance on the passenger side window of my car. (This I found out later was crushed rock/brick material from the rock/brick he used to throw at the window.) I immediately ran inside for the phone and called 911.

After dialing 911, I ran back outside with the police dispatcher on the line, I wanted to give the police a solid time frame, a description of the suspect, and his direction of travel. It appeared that this particular criminal was not very fast as he only ran about half a block before slowing down and walking. I followed him for about 50 yards with the police dispatcher on the line. He continued down the street for about two blocks and that's when I saw the police lights of approximately 3 units activate. I told the dispatcher that I was pretty sure that the suspect was apprehended, thanked him, and hung up. I walked back to my house to inspect the damage and wait for the arrival of the officers to give my statement. All of this couldn't have taken more than 2-3 minutes.

After patiently waiting for the officers to arrive for my statement, two officers pulled up in their cruisers. They informed me that they had apprehended a suspect that fit my description and that I would be given the opportunity to ID the suspect. I explained the details of the incident and gave my Identification to the officer. I explained to him that I was an ex-Military Police Officer and that my Brother is currently a Police Officer. He thanked me for my service and commended me on my quick action in notifying the police as the officers were currently investigating a string of similar car break-ins in center city. The officer theorized that because of the heavy police patrols in center city, this suspect was forced out of town to pursue his break-ins. After taking down my statement, the officers searched the area for the object that was used to throw at my window, and in the process of that, they discovered a small, black tactical flashlight that was possibly used to shine into the vehicle to see the contents better. With no luck finding the rock/brick, the officer brought the suspect in the back of the police car to the scene for me to ID. He shined the light into the police car onto the suspect's face and I positively ID'ed him as the man sitting on the curb next to my car at the time of the banging noise. Case closed!

I received a notice to attend a court hearing as a witness in the suspect's case. I have to go sometime in July 2015, so hopefully, all goes well and I can update this Hub with the final verdict! Thanks for reading and stay tuned!!!

While awaiting trial, I went to the dealership for an estimate to replace the damaged window. To estimate to replace the window and the controls on my 2008 Ford Edge would cost a whopping $1,500 and some change. Great. I don't have a lot of experience with the court so this was pretty new to me. I arrived at the courthouse ahead of the scheduled time. I went to the window and explained why I was here and asked if I needed to do anything. The court clerk said to just wait in the courtroom until they call your name. I waited and waited, they never called me. Finally, I was the last person in the room and the judge asked who I was, I explained that I was here for the car burglary case and she was like, oh, I wasn't aware you were going to be here. She conferred with the prosecutor and he called me out in the hallway. The prosecutor proceeds to get snippy with me and asks why I didn't check in so I could meet with him before court started. I explained that I checked in and was told to wait in the courtroom until my name was called. He got all puffy and led me back to the courtroom. The next thing I know, they bring the burglar out in an orange jumpsuit, it appears he is currently incarcerated. They start the trial ask me a few questions, the burglar pleads guilty and she sentences him to 30 days in jail. I raised my hand and asked about restitution. The judge kind of looked at me and I held up the estimate for repairs to my car window and explain that during the robbery, the defendant damaged my window and it needs to be replaced. She took my estimate and added restitution to the defendant's sentence and I have been waiting 6 years to receive my money. Not sure if I will ever see it. That is my experience with the justice system. I guess I'll keep waiting.